Discussion of the return of the body of an American woman killed in Syria

• The U.S. Congress, represented by Abraham Hamadeh, visited Syria to discuss the return of the body of Kayla Mueller.
• Searches for the remains of people killed by the Islamic State continue in the liberated areas of Syria.
• There was a discussion about the establishment of a humanitarian corridor for assistance in the province of Suwayda.

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) – U.S. Congressman Abraham Hamadeh made a brief visit to Syria, where he discussed with the interim president of the region the return of the body of an American volunteer who was captured by militants and later confirmed killed in this war-torn region.

Hamadeh's visit to Syria took place against the backdrop of searches in the liberated areas of the region for the remains of people who were killed by the terrorist group Islamic State, which once controlled large parts of Syria and Iraq until its territorial defeat six years ago.

Kayla Mueller, 26, was captured in northern Syria in September 2013, and her family and American officials confirmed her death more than a year later. Hamadeh, a Republican from Arizona, promised to return Mueller's body, which has not yet been found, to her family.

Hamadeh's office reported that he spent six years in Syria, meeting with President Ahmad al-Sharaa to discuss the return of Mueller's body to her family in Arizona. The statement also noted that Hamadeh discussed the urgent need to establish a safe humanitarian corridor for the delivery of medical and humanitarian assistance to southern Suwayda province, where a recent violent confrontation occurred between rival fighters and armed groups from the Druze minority.

From the hands of Islamic State fighters, dozens of foreigners have been killed, including volunteers and journalists, who were captured during the takeover of the so-called caliphate in 2014. The militants lost most of their territory in Iraq around 2017 and were completely defeated in 2019.

Since then, in northern Syria, dozens of graves have been found that contain the remains of people abducted by the Islamic State over the years. Among the dead are American journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, as well as volunteers, including Mueller.

Mueller, originally from Prescott, Arizona, was captured along with her boyfriend Omar al-Ahmed after leaving a hospital in Aleppo, where he worked on rebuilding internet infrastructure. Mueller was reportedly trying to help her take part in humanitarian projects in the country, which is experiencing war. Al-Ahmed was released two months later, after which he was abducted.

In 2015, the Pentagon confirmed that Mueller was killed at the hands of the Islamic State, and not during an air raid by Jordanian forces, as extremists had previously claimed.

Tags: USA/Middle East/Politics